After a close but ultimately unsuccessful game against the Hurricanes on Saturday night at Carisbrook, Highlanders coach Glenn Moore admitted the scoreboard is what matters but the side simply wanted to get some enjoyment on the paddock.
Moore felt the team had shown what it was capable of on Saturday night, and would be looking to build on that when it takes on the Waratahs in Invercargill on Friday night.
The Highlanders, down to 12th in the Super 14, were beaten 33-31 in an entertaining game which could have gone either way.
Both sides scored five tries in a match which see-sawed all over the place, though the Highlanders were never in front.
Moore said his side had played well but there were defensive lapses which were costly.
"It is a loss on the scoreboard and that is a big part of it.
But we put in some good patches in there," Moore said.
"But we talked this week about wanting to enjoy ourselves and playing for each other. One of the ways to enjoy yourself is to turn up and put on a good performance and a winning performance. We couldn't quite win but the big focus was putting trust in one another."
Moore said if the players believed in themselves then they could perform up to the standards that they were capable of.
"I've got huge faith in what these guys can do and are capable of."
He felt the Highlanders defence let in too many easy yards on the inside and that was something they had talked about.
He said there was still plenty to get from the season.
"We've looked on this last few weeks as a mini campaign.
"We've got to play our guts out every week . . . there is plenty to build on. It was a good game to watch and we really worked hard on when we got space we got guys running into those holes."
He praised his loose forwards saying No 8 Steven Setephano had an excellent game, while openside flanker Alando Soakai had been outstanding.
Michael Hobbs got a nasty cut to his hand after it was stood on, while Adam Thomson took a nasty blow to the eye, when attempting to tackle Hurricanes winger Tamati Ellison, but the duo should be right for next week.
Highlanders captain Jimmy Cowan said he wanted two things to come out of Saturday night's game.
"The first was to play for 80 minutes and I think we managed that with the try right at the end. And the other thing was enjoyment," Cowan said.
"That is probably what we have been lacking in the past four or five weeks. You get a rut, and it is tough when things are like that.
"But a lot of us and the coaching staff said this week to play for the enjoyment. It has been tough. But we wanted to go out there and play with our mates, and enjoy it. And we did, we scored some good tries.
"The guys looked as though they were enjoying it. So those are two pleasing things going forward. We had a structured game plan and played some good rugby."
Cowan said he got frustrated when his opposite Tyson Keats scored in the first half, and paid credit to referee Vinny Munro for taking him away and calming him down.
Cowan appeared to be held back by players coming through in a ruck.
He said the performance showed the talent was there in the team, and they were keen to claim some wins over Australian teams over the next three weeks.
